PH urges UN for more efforts to help least developed countries
The Philippines has called on the donor countries of the United Nations to "redouble their efforts" and fulfill their commitments for the least developed countries on debt structuring, debt relief, and financing for development.
Department of Foreign Affairs Undersecretary for Multilateral and International Economic Relations Carlos Sorreta made the appeal as the Philippines, a middle-income country, expressed solidarity with the least developed ones.
During the UN Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC5) in Doha, Sorreta said LDCs are where the battle to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) must be won "to attain the future that we all want."
Currently, there are 46 LDCs. The UN Conferences on LDCs are being held once every 10 years to support the graduation of all LDCs into middle-income country status.
"Only by uplifting LDCs towards irreversible graduation will we see true people-centered prosperity and sustainable development take hold," he said.
Sorreta also affirmed the Philippines’ support to the vision outcomes of the first and succeeding United Nations Conference on the LDC/ and the "Doha Programme of Action (DPoA)" for LDCs, a blueprint for providing LDCs with much-needed support for development.
The LDC5 Conference adopted a Political Declaration to support implementation of the DPoA.
Sorreta cited the important role that the Philippines and other middle-income countries (MICs) play in fully implementing the plan of action.
"MICs share comparable experiences and can provide LDCs with financial resources, knowledge, expertise, and technology that can enable LDCs to build productive capacities, diversify their economies, and develop human and social capital," he said.
Sorreta then expressed the Philippines' desire to expand development cooperation initiatives with LDCs in the form of technical cooperation, scholarships, and capacity-building through a South-South and Triangular Cooperation.
Since the first UN Conference on LDCs in 1981, the Philippines has actively advocated for the interests of LDCs, according to DFA.